Foskey resigns

When Hardeeville City Councilman Mike Foskey resigned Aug. 18, it was about time to do so, as far as he was concerned.

“We were moving to Bluffton last week even as I made the announcement and I can’t occupy the seat in Hardeeville while I live in Bluffton,” Foskey said. “We’ve been debating it for several years. My son is 5 and he’s been going to school in Bluffton since he was 2, and our office has a been in Bluffton for three years.”

Economics and time with the family played major parts in the decision for Foskey and his wife, Christine.

“With the price of gas, our kids getting into sports ... and we spent 80 percent of our time in Bluffton anyway, so it was just smarter for us to move there,” he said. “We hired an office manager at the beginning of the summer and she made us aware that we were spending $800 a month in gas, so that just made more sense to move economically. And it’s a better quality of life for the kids because after we pick them up in school, we’re home in two minutes and we get to spend more time with them.”

Foskey resigned during the regular council meeting, prompting the need for a special election to fill the remaining 10 months of his term.

The special election to fill Foskey’s seat will take place Nov. 15, the requisite 13 Tuesdays past the official resignation, as per state ordinances, according to City Clerk Lori Pomarico. The election will only allow the candidate to fill the remainder of the term. If the individual decides to run the next term, the same process must be followed, Pomarico said.

“When it’s a special election, the timing is very different from a normal election,” she said. “Anyone interested in applying for the seat needs to come by City Hall to pick up the complete filing package and it contains all of the forms — everything the candidate must do to be considered eligible, most of which is filed electronically these days.”

The candidate who wins the election will be sworn in Dec. 1 and will fill the seat for six months. The filing period opens noon Friday, Sept. 2 and closes noon Friday, Sept. 16.